EPT
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It's the final weekly stats report, and I'd like to start it with an apology and another correction. Last week I informed you all that the playoffs will have the top six teams in it. This is not true. Our translator missed something. The six teams will only enter the playoffs next season. This season will only see the top four teams entering the playoffs.
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With the all matches done now we get to see the final standings, and what a surprise this season has turned into. In first place we see Samsung Khan at the top again, revitalised by the emergence of Jangbi as a true force, as well as by some young players performing well.
In second place we have SKT who have come back all guns blazing this season. With the appointment of Oov as a coach their Terran players have shown fantastic play, especially Midas. Another strong player for SKT is BeSt, who ends the season on third position.
In third place we have OGN, who have been something of a surprise this season. With no big name players (except perhaps Luxury), and a poor start to the season, OGN have come back to show fantastic results at the end of the season.
The final team to go through is STX SouL, who have managed to avoid losing any of their final matches in order to secure themselves a position in the playoffs. With many experienced players, and some dangerous rookies, STX looks like a real threat for the playoffs.
![[image loading]](http://www.teamliquid.net/staff/Daigomi/M0714.png)
In the map standings we see the winning percentages drawing closer to 50% as the season comes to a close. Overall, the maps seem to favour Terran slightly, especially when taking into consideration the amount of TvT matches played.
However, Zerg has made something of a comeback in the last few weeks, and have moved up to 43% winning percentage, showing that it can keep up on most of the new maps (except Wuthering Heights).
Protoss has also shown decent winning records on most new maps, and they have excelled on last season's maps. The matches in the playoffs will almost certainly be the last time we see Katrina played profesionally, and perhaps it will also be the end of Blue Storm. More than many maps, I think these two maps have defined a distinctive, if not always balanced, period of pro-starcraft, and it's with some sadness that I watvh them go.
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The 1v1 rankings this week will make many people jubilant, and many others feel a sense of unjustness. Flash, after 13 consecutive weeks on top, has been dethroned by Pure in the last day of game play. After the extroadinaroy draw, followed by a loss to Jangbi, and Pure's victory this week, Flash has moved down to second place, while Pure has past him for first place.
Fortunately for the Flash fans, KeSPA counts most wins, and not the number of wins when losses are subtracted. Because of this, Flash will still take the coveted "Most Wins" prize.
Other than at the top, little has changed. Midas is the biggest mover, dropping down considerably after two consecutive losses.
There are surprisingly two MBC players in the top 10, something that might not be guessed from their team's 10-12 score. In contrast, STX has only one player in the top 10, but their 14-8 score reflects a much better team performance by the other players.
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Finally, in the 2v2 section there are some big changes to report. Fake Yellow and Zeus have busted their way into second position, over taking long time leaders TT and Jihyun.
Similarly, Foru and Clon have moved up miraculously in the last week to take top spot. This team of old timers have shown yet again why they are one of the most feared teams in the game, and ACE's biggest weapon.
The team with the most wins though is still TT and Jihyun, who have played in an amazing 17 of Samsung's 22 matches, and have won 11 of those. This team has once again shown why Samsung has been a powerhouse of teamplay over the years.
![[image loading]](http://www.teamliquid.net/staff/Daigomi/Daigomis_Liquibet.png)
+ Show Spoiler [Line-ups] +
No line-ups have been released yet
STX SouL 4 - 2 OGN Sparkyz
STX SouL 4 - 3 SK Telecom T1
STX SouL 2 - 4 Samsung KHAN
With no official line-ups out already, I will simply ramble on here about my predictions.
STX SouL are a massive threat in my opinion. They field a tremendous line-up of purely talented players, players that can produce magic. Starting with experienced players such as July, and Hwasin, and working through to the newer breakthroughs such as Kal, Shuttle, Sheis, and Huskal, they are one of the most unpredictable and dangerous teams in the playoffs.
Their greatest weakness lies in their 2v2s, where, although they have been doing well, they have no "ace" team. STX has no 2v2 team that is well seasoned, and has done well against all competition. Instead they have a few mediocre teams that do well enough against weaker teams, but remain untested against strong teams. This could be very costly for STX with the playoff's setup.
I will say this straigh-up: I do not believe OGN Sparkyz can make it through. Not only do they lack big name players that are certain to take wins (once again, excluding perhaps Luxury), but they also lack consistently strong players that could take wins. While Luxury is a strong player, he is not dependable enough yet, and the same can be said of the whole OGN team.
In recent matches, OGN have been dependent on players like Leta, Shine, and Chalrenge succeeding. Unfortunately, against top competition, I do not think these players have what it takes. With that in mind, they have shown a fabulous streak of form recently, so they just might pull of some magic.
SK Telecom T1 are perhaps the most interesting team in the playoffs. They entered this season with massive structural changes, but few new prospects playing for them. They thus had to depend on their old players reemerging, and successfully beating the young players (something which they were unable to do in previous seasons). And they did just that.
Midas is on a roll this season, beating what we would typically consider "better" players left right and center, while Canata has been destructing experienced Terran players and rookies alike. Best, although not old, has come into his own all of a sudden, and is one of the hottest progamers at the moment.
Added to this, SKT have invested their rookies into teamplay, and it shows. Rumble and Bul_T have done extremely well, especially considering that neither are considered great potential players.
With all this in mind, I think SKT has perhaps the most dependable, and all round balanced, team. Whether this will be enough to hold off STX's onslaught, or stop a team full of top ranked KeSPA players such as Samsung, will remain to be seen.
Which leaves us with only Samsung KHAN, champions of the 2007 Proleague R1, they show no sign of weakening. With strong aces like Firebathero, Stork, and Jangbi, and young talents like Hades and Frozean, as well as a whole line-up of experienced players, and a plethora of possible 2v2 teams, Samsung has a Proleague line-up that just seems to work.
However, there are some chinks in their amour. Stork has not been at his ace form recently, and Firebathero is more likely to lose than win if he catches a Protoss player. Jangbi is a strong player, but he is notoriously inconsistent, and I am uncertain if he can beat other ace players on a consistent basis.
With that said, I still think Samsung has the strongest line-up, and they are my favourites to take this season. They have the depth that counts, and as long as they don't get a few bad match-ups, or their top players don't misfire, they should take the finals.
+ Show Spoiler [Last Week's Predictions] +
Match Accuracy: 6/10
Game Accuracy: 2/10
CJ Entus 2 - 3 Lecaf OZ
SK Telecom T1 2 - 3 OGN Sparkyz
Hanbit Stars 2 - 3 Air Force ACE
WeMade FOX 3 - 2 eSTRO
MBCGame HERO 2 - 3 STX SouL
KTF MagicNs 3 - 1 Samsung KHAN
OGN Sparkyz 3 - 2 Lecaf OZ
SK Telecom T1 1 - 3 CJ Entus
Hanbit Stars 3 - 2 eSTRO
WeMade FOX 3 - 2 Air Force ACE
And that concludes yet another season of the Weekly Stats Report, and possibly my last. Last Romantic will handle the play-off reports for this season, and next season I will move to MSL Previews. Hopefully this will guarantee you all a more up to date R&S, as well as some fresh ideas in the proleague news posts.
I hope you've all enjoyed it as much as I have, and see you all with some hype next season!
